


The Rain Clouds, The Snow Clouds

by Boomchick



Series: Sefikura Week 2021 [2]
Category: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: (offscreen) - Freeform, Animal Abuse, Cat!Cloud, Dog!Zack, Happy Ending, Implied dog fighting, M/M, Pet Owners Tifa Barret & Marlene, Sefikura Week 2021, Wolfdog!Sephiroth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-12 14:08:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29011800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Boomchick/pseuds/Boomchick
Summary: Sefikura Week 2021: Day 2 [New Beginnings]Cloud almost got eaten by dogs once. He wasn't a kitten, but he was still small. If it hadn't been for that weird black dog and that huge white one, he would have been torn to shreds. Even without getting eaten, he'd still ended up in bad shape.But that was before Tifa, Marlene and Barret found him. Now Cloud has a safe, warm home with his weird humans. All is perfect. Except knowing that white dog is still out there. Chained in a yard, all alone.-or-Cat!Cloud goes on a rescue mission.
Relationships: Sephiroth/Cloud Strife
Series: Sefikura Week 2021 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2126409
Comments: 35
Kudos: 381
Collections: Sefikura (Sephiroth/Cloud) Week - Yearly Event





	The Rain Clouds, The Snow Clouds

**Author's Note:**

> This fic contains some heavy references to animal abuse, though I've tried to keep it all offscreen and make it clear that everyone will be okay. Just be warned if that's hard for you to read about!

_His fur on one side was matted. There was something all over him, and it smelled awful, and harsh, but he couldn’t clean it off. He couldn’t risk grooming anyway. Any second they would find him. Any second. He pressed back into the corner of the sagging box and kept his eyes fixed on the opening. Any second now, hands. Any second now, teeth. They’d throw him to the dogs. He would keep fighting. He would lose._

“Cloud,” a soft voice was calling his name. “Cloud!”

“What is it, Marlene?”

“Papa, Cloud’s having a bad dream again.”

A hand in his fur. He dragged in a breath. He knew those scents. Not the acerbic chemical smell of spray paint. Not mud and blood and desperation.

The little hand on his back petted. Gently. Just like Tifa had taught her.

“Careful, Marlene. You know he’s still jumpy. I don’t wantcha gettin’ scratched again.”

“It’s okay. He was sorry.”

He _had_ been sorry. Marlene was good, and soft, and warm. Her and Tifa. Barret was too, but he was just so _big_ . It took bravery that Cloud didn’t always have to come close. Twice he’d managed to convince himself to get in Barret’s lap, and both times it had been so _warm_ and _safe_ there. Barret had put his big hand over Cloud and it had basically covered his entire body, and _no one_ could have touched him there.

He still ran away if Barret tried to come close to him, though.

“You can wake up, Cloud.” Marlene was saying. “It was only a dream.”

 _I am awake_ Cloud thought, flicking an ear back. _I just don’t want you to see me like this._

But then she was stroking his shoulders, scratching gently at the base of his neck and he just—

“Mrrrp?” He trilled despite himself, arching into the touch. He pulled his paws up to cover his face, pressing his whiskers to his cheeks. _Embarrassing._

“Aw!” Barret and Marlene cooed, the same sentiment many octaves apart.

Cloud was going to have to ignore both of them all day in order to regain _any_ self esteem after that…

* * *

The new apartment was nice. He’d already rubbed his face and cheeks against every corner and piece of furniture he could reach. The sofa was _great_ for his claws, but it made Tifa get the spray bottle, so Cloud sulkily kept to the scratching post.

He couldn't be mad at her. He remembered those hands reaching in that cardboard box. Scooping him out. _Poor little guy. You look just like..._

He’d remembered her. Her mother. The box with his brothers and sisters. 

_Can’t we keep the little one? I named him Cloud._

_You’re about to go to college and I don’t want a cat. Someone will love him, I promise_.

Fat chance.

He didn’t blame her, though. She’d picked him up, bandaged up his hurt paw, and washed the mud and spray paint out of his fur. She’d given him fish, and called him ‘Cloud’ and brought him home. Barret didn’t want a cat either, he’d said it quite loudly quite a few times at first, but he let Cloud stay anyway. And considering the amount of time he spent these days crouching on the floor making ‘pspspsps’ noises and rubbing his fingers together, Cloud thought he might have changed his mind by now.

It was a fun game to pretend he didn’t understand what Barret wanted, even though he’d answer Marlene’s calls without question. He’d even let her put a collar on him, with a bell and a tag that said ‘Cloud.’

A week in, and the apartment was starting to smell right. It smelled like him, and his new family, and he hardly ever thought about it anymore. The nightmares didn’t come as often as they had.

“Tifa, is Cloud a kitten?” Marlene asked the other day.

“No, Marlene. He’s just a small cat.”

Somewhere a dog had barked. Cloud’s fur bristled and he turned to the patio door, puffed up as big as he could go. His claws were still sharp. His teeth were still ready. His body was still fast and strong. Even if he was small, he wouldn’t go down easy.

_Holy shit, where the fuck did you find that cat? It’s like a demon!_

_Throw it in with the dogs, they could use a warm up._

The barking dog didn’t come closer. Cloud had hidden under the sofa for the rest of the day. Barret lay on his belly to slide his dinner under the sofa to him, and Cloud had allowed him a couple of pets purely out of gratitude.

It was hard to feel safe some days.

* * *

“You can if you want.” Tifa told him one day, holding the door open to the rest of the apartment. “Some of the other cats wander. You might make a friend or two.”

Cloud stayed frozen in the doorway, staring out, tail twitching behind him.

He turned around and stalked away, tail held high, pretending he wasn’t afraid. Tifa laughed at him anyway. He led her to his food dish and glared until she relented.

* * *

He didn’t venture out until it was his idea. Then he darted between Barret’s feet fast enough to startle and confuse the whole household.

“Wait!” Marlene cried behind him.

“It’s okay,” Tifa had comforted. “Let him stretch his legs a little. He knows where to come for dinner.”

The building smelled like a million things. People, and cats, and dogs, and mice. Cloud stalked one of the mice through the walls as he walked, his ears pinpointing the movement, his eyes wild with the hunt.

The barking of a dog outside sent him scrambling for cover under a decorative coffee table.

There was silence soon, but he was still panting. His chest heaving as he breathed, his fur bristled, his claws ready to—

_Hello?_

Glowing cat eyes peered under the table at him. She was long-haired, and brown, and her eyes were vibrant green. She lifted her tail. Stretched languidly. Lay in front of the coffee table so she could look at him.

 _Hello_. He replied reluctantly, curling back into the corner, fur still bristled.

 _The dogs are outside._ She informed him, almost idly as she washed one of her paws. With delicate motions.

 _I know that_.

_You know something else too, don’t you._

Cloud didn’t reply.

 _Come on,_ she called, purring softly to him, her eyes falling half-closed with relaxation.

He slunk closer. She waited patiently. Sniffed noses with him. She smelled like flowers.

 _Aerith._ She informed him.

 _Cloud._ He replied.

When she turned her head to start grooming the fur of his cheek, Cloud averted his eyes and slowly settled in, hunkering at her side. Small and ruffled and afraid next to her majestic relaxation.

 _They’re hurting them._ Cloud said at last, while she put a paw on his back and half-rose to wash the top of his head.

_The humans? Yes. Are you scared of them or the dogs?_

_I’m not scared._

_There’s no reason to puff up at me._ Aerith’s tail was lashing with amusement, but she was warm and safe and even as he bristled she groomed the fur on the back of his neck back down. It made the bell on his collar jingle.

 _Someone loves you,_ she noted.

 _You too._ Cloud agreed, twisting his head to sniff at her collar.

 _Do you want to see?_ She asked, apparently satisfied at last with the state of his fur as she stood up and stretched.

_See?_

_The dogs. I find it helps to look at what you’re afraid of. Don’t you?_

Aerith turned, fluffy tail high, and wandered down the hall.

 _Not really._ Cloud muttered, but he followed her anyway, body low to the ground and alert for danger.

Aerith brought him to a window that had bars on it and drawn curtains. She was twice his size— maybe one of the biggest cats he’d ever seen— but she lept up delicately and easy. Like she weighed nothing at all. Cloud was no slouch though. He waited till she’d settled in then angled between the bars neatly with one high jump, sliding back behind the curtains with the lady.

 _They keep the window covered because they don’t like people to see._ The cat informed him, her tail twitching slowly. _People love to cover up what makes them sad._

She looked down, and Cloud followed her gaze. They were on the second floor. That was some comfort. Some little comfort. Because Tifa had brought him here in a small plastic box and he hadn’t seen—

 _I know that_ , he moaned, hunkering down in the window, shaking. His ears pinned back. His eyes fixed on that yard. He knew that yard. That shed.

He knew the huge white dog chained in the backyard, sitting still and silent as a ghost even as the other dogs snarled and paced.

> It was raining, and Cloud was pressed back behind the chained dog shaking and wet and they were going to kill him. They were going to kill him.
> 
> _I can’t do this anymore, Seph._ The dog said, black and sopping wet and young, ear pinned back and the X-shaped scar on his muzzle. _He’s hurt, and scared, and skinny, and I’m—_
> 
> _Then go._ The white dog said.
> 
> _I’m not strong enough to break it._ The black dog said with a whine. He shifted in the mud. Pulled against his chain. Cloud shivered again. One of the other dogs snarled and snapped.
> 
> _Eat it!_ The dog was roaring. _Eat it, eat it!_
> 
> _Please_. Cloud had whispered.
> 
> _I’m not going to eat you_ , the dog replied, looking to him with its sopping wet ears perked and its tongue lolling in a friendly smile. _It’s okay._
> 
> The white dog looked to the house. Someone was throwing things. Someone was yelling. Someone was laughing. Cloud pressed down deeper into the mud. He couldn’t seem to catch his breath.
> 
> _You’ll have to be quick._ He said, and stood from where he had been sitting. He was enormous. Cloud stared up in abject horror, fangs bared but knowing it would do no good. His ears pinned back, and his fur puffed and his body shook—
> 
> And the monster of a dog bit down on the black dog’s chain and started pulling. Dug his paws into the sinking mud. His teeth shone, and his muzzle scrunched in a snarl of concentration, and his wild eyes stared fixedly down at the chain as he pulled. He let out a snarl of frustration. Re-bit. Shook the chain hard. A vicious, tearing, murderous motion that would have broken Cloud’s spine. Might have broken Cloud’s spine. They were going to set the dogs loose on him. They’d said—
> 
> The black dog was tugged by the motion. Stumbled. Regained his feet. Looked to the house.
> 
> _Hurry._ He pleaded.
> 
> The white dog pinned his ears. Snarled low in his chest. Ripped the stake holding the chain down out of the ground with a tremendous show of force. He dropped the chain from a bloody mouth, panting with a too-red tongue past his shining teeth.
> 
> _Don’t come back._ He said.
> 
> _You could come?_
> 
> _Run, Zack._
> 
> _Bye, Seph._
> 
> The black dog turned to Cloud. Gave him that soft smile. _I have to carry you. Don’t bite me, okay Spikey?_
> 
> Cloud should have. He should have scratched and screamed and fought as that dog picked him up in careful jaws. He should have had a heart attack. But he just couldn’t. The dog was too soft. Too earnest. Too wet. He picked him up with gentle jaws around his middle instead of lifting him by the scruff.
> 
> The dogs around them were raising a nightmarish racket. Barking and howling and snarling. Cloud looked at the white dog. He sat back down slowly, and turned his gaze away.
> 
> Then the dog called Zack jumped the fence.
> 
> But it was so dark, and the rain, and—
> 
> The car slammed on the breaks, but Zack’s leg was—
> 
> _Go, Spikey!_ Zack had called between his high-pitched hipping whines. As the human stopped the car, and approached and— _Go, don’t let them catch you!_

Someone was grooming his head. He was warm and someone—

_Mom?_

A soft laugh.

_Definitely not._

Cloud took a breath. He’d curled as tight as he could. He hadn’t even realized. Aerith was grooming his head again. From behind, mussing his fur up. She had curled up halfway on top of him, purring softly, protective and warm.

 _Sorry,_ Cloud said, but he didn’t even try to move.

Aerith just purred louder and washed behind his ears.

Cloud forced his eyes back to that muddy backyard. To the white dog sitting still and quiet. He was separate from the other dogs now. They must have realized he’d set Zack free.

They must have been angry.

Cloud thought of the past months. Of a warm bed and fish and crunchy dinners and little girls and grown men both whispering ‘pspspsps’ at him, eager to touch him gently with warm hands.

 _Do you look often?_ He said to Aerith.

 _Not so often these days._ She admitted. _There used to be a dog there… Nevermind. Why?_

 _The white dog,_ Cloud said. ‘Seph,’ he thought, but he wasn’t sure. It seemed wrong to call him that. _Is he—_

 _That’s not a dog._ Aerith said, eyes turning out the window to look down on him.

Cloud watched her, then followed her gaze. He’d known that, he guessed. There was something different about him. Something Other. Like something else wearing a dog’s skin.

 _Maybe half._ Aerith allowed after a moment.

 _He saved me._ Cloud told her. _Him and…_

But that hurt too much. He wished he’d stayed. He wished he’d been strong enough to fight off the humans and help Zack, like Zack had helped him. They didn’t even know each other. Zack was just… He was just a good dog.

_You want to help him?_

_Yes._

_Brave._ Aerith murmured, somewhere between annoyance and approval. She didn’t let him go yet, though. She groomed him till he stopped shaking, and kept purring, loud and steady.

When he was calm, she took him to the broken door and showed him how to use it.

* * *

“Look who’s back.” Tifa said, hands on her hips as she stepped aside for Cloud to slink into the apartment. “Did you make any friends?”

Cloud was thinking too hard to be personable. His tail lashed behind him. He’d need to figure it out. The chain, the dirt, the wolf-dog. And where would they go?

Tifa scooped him up gently. He kept his claws in even as he pushed against her. But he surrendered to it quickly. She was warm, and gentle, and she scratched under his chin.

Where would they go? There was only one answer.

* * *

Tifa had to work at the bar that night. He hated the rattling sound of her keys. Usually he hid. Just in case it was a trip to the vet again.

This time he waited until she turned to call goodbye to her roommates, and slipped out the door past her, darting underneath the same table he’d found that morning before she could see him.

They were always active at night, he remembered, but he was a cat. He would outlast them without doubt.

The broken door was just as Aerith promised. Though with her size, she’d just had to lean her shoulder against it to slide outside. Cloud had to back way up, and slam his full body weight into it. It made an enormous sound, but it opened enough for him to dart through.

He hadn’t been outside since that night. He only realized it as he stood out there in the cool evening, with the sounds of crickets and buzzing insects and the soft light of the moon. He’d forgotten it could be nice. That it could be not raining. That the weather could be cool and fresh.

He allowed himself a slow breath, his tail curling up into the air, twitching left and right, just for a moment.

Then he was off like a flicker. His dull gold coat flickered in the streetlights as he worked his way around to the garbage cans by the fence. This was where he needed to be careful. The people in this house liked to throw rocks. Like to catch and torment. Liked to twist a cat’s foot, cover him in spray paint, and let him loose in a pen full of dogs.

Tifa had fixed his foot, though. Tifa and Barret and Marlene. And the vet, he guessed. Ugh…

It held his weight silently as he lept on top of the plastic bins. On top of the fence. He crouched. Shifted his weight. Calculated. Lept.

He was a small cat, but it made him impossibly agile. He alighted on the roof without trouble, and crouched low to the tiles, slinking his way up to the very top to hunker in and watch.

The dogs hadn’t noticed. They paced and growled and snapped at one another.

Except for the white wolfdog, who was looking directly at him. Fixing that intense impossibly green stare in his direction. Dogs aren’t supposed to have green eyes, Cloud thought in annoyance, and pinned his lashing tail with his front paw, licking the tip of it twice to make it settle down.

When he looked down again, it was like Zack’s ‘Seph’ hadn’t even seen him.

Cloud let his eyes half-close. Kept his breathing slow and steady. Watched over the dog yard, partially obscured by the chimney. He tried to stay calm. Thought of home, and Aerith. Thought of Zack. Thought of his mom. Caught himself kneading the roof tiles and purring to himself.

_Embarrassing…_

He twisted to give himself a thorough grooming, hidden behind the chimney.

_Hello, cat._

Cloud froze. Twisted back. Stared at the huge bird behind him. Red and ruffled. Its crest flared as it observed him. Its pupil shrank and grew.

Cloud recognized it. Puffed slowly. Making himself bigger. The bird was almost as big as he was. No fair, no fair, no fair! He was at least supposed to be bigger than birds.

 _They used to keep me to warn them you know,_ the bird said, tilting its head. _They used to feed me treats to bother the dogs. They used to send me up here to keep an eye out_.

 _Used to. S_ aid Cloud, back arched, holding back a yowl that would set the whole dog yard to barking.

 _If I called, they’d come looking._ The parrot informed him, tilting its head, observing him, working at the inside of its black beak with its tongue. Cloud shuddered. He remembered that voice. A sweet mockery of human tongue. _So you had best give me a reason not to_.

 _I hate them._ Cloud spat soundlessly, opening his mouth in a yowl he wouldn’t let escape him. _I’ll stop them. I’ll save him_.

The bird twisted its head the other way. Stared at him. Flared its wings and preened black and red feathers.

 _Which?_ It asked.

 _The white dog._ Cloud replied stubbornly, watching the way the bird’s sharp claws gripped the roof, squeezing on and off again.

The parrot through his head back and for a second Cloud thought it would raise the alarm, that—

 _Good luck with that._ The parrot laughed at him, blinking its strange eyes. _Tell Sephiroth that Genesis said hello._

Then it flew away. One of the dogs barked after it, but it would have made as much noise at a pigeon. Cloud stayed hunkered down, watching the parrot fly. He’d hated that thing. It had laughed at him. It had dropped pieces of cat food down on him while he was in the cage and said ‘dumb cat’ in a human voice.

But watching it fly, he was glad for it. No one should live in that house.

 _Sephiroth,_ he repeated to himself, quietly.

* * *

They came out at night. They always did. Threw food to the dogs. Slapped their flanks in ways that some of the dogs thought was playful and clearly hurt and frightened others. The humans didn’t seem to care.

Not all of them were there today. The Boss was, with his sleek, cold guard dogs the Turks. They were the only dogs allowed in the house. One of them had enjoyed snapping at Cloud in his cage just to watch him jump. The others had mostly left him alone. Small blessings.

“Still off his feed?” The boss was saying, walking straight up to Sephiroth.

“It won’t last.” Said the cold one. “All that stubbornness that serves him so well in the ring comes at a price, it would seem. Still, I can always breed another like him, if this one fails.”

“We’ll see if he feels like behaving after tomorrow’s three on one match.” Said the boss with a grunt. He turned to walk away without throwing down any food for the white dog.

“If nothing else it will be an interesting experiment.” The cold one chuckled, hands clasped behind his hands as he walked back through the yard of dogs messily devouring their dinners.

Only Sephiroth sat alone and still. Watching the humans go back inside before turning his gaze back to the fence. Cloud’s motion-attuned eyes saw him swallow back his hunger.

 _He’s going to eat me_ Cloud thought, and had to spend the next hour grooming to get away from the thought.

* * *

He waited until the lights inside went out.

He waited until the yard went still as the dogs drifted into sleep.

He waited until the world was dark and still, except for the occasional car sweeping by with a controlled roar. Until he could talk his heart into beating calmly, and keep his fur sleek and smooth.

Then he slid down from behind the chimney like water. Jumped down onto smooth, rounded metal at the top of the chain link fence, careful of the points at the end of the chainlinks themselves. Fabric covered the fence. Humans loved hiding what they didn’t want to see.

He moved steady and slow. Kept his weight low. Kept his eyes wide. The dark was no impediment. He saw what moved, and that was all he needed. He watched the white wolf’s ear turn to follow his progress where he sat unmoving. Unnervingly still.

Cloud hesitated. Glanced around the yard once more. Flexed his paws. Shifted his tail to check and alter his balance. They had probably intended to keep Sephiroth from freeing any more dogs by moving him into his own side of the field. It had only made Cloud’s job easier.

He took a deep breath. Glanced behind himself to the towering apartment building. He could see movement in the window where he and Aerith had perched. He was being observed.

He turned back to the pen, braced himself, and jumped down lightly inside.

He didn’t greet the white dog. His fur was already ruffled again, his ears pinned back in anxiety. The enormous wolfdog could have eaten him in a single bite.

And he’d have still gotten those past months comfortable and happy and safe, just because he’d decided to help. He couldn’t walk tall and brave, but he could trot to the stake in the ground and start digging.

 _Little cat,_ the white dog said, closer than Cloud had thought.

Cloud puffed a little further. Kept his eyes focused, even as he saw the pale shadow moving in the dark. Lowering his huge head down to gaze at him.

 _I have a name._ He informed him. _I’m Cloud_.

 _Bold._ Sephiroth commented. _You’ll get nowhere with that. Beneath the surface there is concrete. They learned from their mistake. It is the curse of humans. That they learn new ways to trap us._

 _Not all of them._ Cloud insisted, even as he paused in digging, lifting his head to meet the wolfdog’s eyes. Green and bright as he stared down his long, long snout at Cloud.

 _I heard the car._ Sephiroth said. _Did Zack die?_

 _No. But I lost him._ Cloud said. _I hope he’s safe, but it’s only hope._

_Then why are you here? If he did not send you?_

Cloud hesitated. Then took a bold step forward. Took a deep breath. Clenched his eyes shut. Pressed forward. Nudged his head against Sephiroth’s snout. Pushed forward another step. Twisted his head to scent-mark him with his cheek. Gratitude, it would have meant to another cat. Debt.

Sephiroth puffed a breath out through his nose. He did not seem to understand. But he also didn’t bite. His fur was coarse under Cloud’s whiskers.

Cloud didn’t bother explaining himself further. He turned back to his work. Prowled around the chain. Took it in his teeth. Pulled experimentally.

 _You have a collar_.

 _Yes._ The chain was strong. Stronger than his jaws at least. He paced closer to the wolf. Tilted his head to inspect the collar around his neck. Tight. Mean. Biting claws on the inside. It would have pinched if he’d pulled. Cloud had seen them before.

_Go home, then. They steal cats like you. Feed them to us. To rile us up. To bring out the blood lust._

_So eat me._ Cloud challenged, glaring up at him with his ears flattened in annoyance.

Sephiroth didn’t move.

Cloud held still, daring him. Challenging him. Then he huffed and stood on his hind legs. Braced one paw on Sephiroth’s fluffy chest. It was softer than it looked. The fur deeper than it appeared on the surface. He tilted closer to inspect the mechanism that held the collar to the chain.

 _There is nowhere I could go_. Sephiroth warned.

 _Sure there is._ Cloud leaned forward. Bit the metal experimentally. Not quite, but it did _move_ a little. That was something.

 _I am not a dog_.

 _Do you bite?_ Cloud asked, pawing at the mechanism, carefully extending his claws, trying to find the trick.

_When I like._

Cloud shivered. His tail puffed up. He lifted his head, looking up at Sephiroth, who had tilted his head to watch him. Cloud hesitated, then stood taller. Braced one paw brazenly on Sephiroth’s muzzle. Stared at him.

 _Do not bite my little girl, and you will be fine._ Cloud ordered. _Barret will protect you, and Tifa will heal you, and Marlene will pet you with soft, careful hands. And you will have a collar with a bell and tags and your name, and they will take you for walks, and feed you treats. Perhaps I will even share my fish._

Sephiroth stared. Took a deep breath. Then the faintest, softest whine escape him. Something wanting and deep and wild as the wolf’s blood he had, but not in the way Cloud had expected.

 _You have a pack._ He whispered in understanding.

Cloud purred softly in pride, and tilted his head to knock his skull against Sephiroth’s head once more before dropping down to all fours, puzzling at the lock that held him to the ground.

 _They press part of it with their fingers._ Sephiroth informed him. _It moves down._

Cloud narrowed his eyes. Hooked one claw through the hook of the contraption. Found the catch. Tried to work it with his paws. With his claw. He was a small cat, and not strong, but he could feel it slide. Feel the motion. He could do this.

 _I need you to lie down._ Cloud told him, dropping his hold and stepping back. _With all my weight on it it won’t budge._

 _You weigh that much?_ The wolfdog asked, perfect ears tilting just a bit.

Cloud puffed up in wounded pride, grumbling to himself even as Sephiroth edged his front paws out ahead of him. Settling down in the dirt. Cloud bit the chain. At its base. It weighed on him as he climbed up onto Sephiroth’s back. He forced himself not to use his claws. To stumble and struggle with his balance rather than dig in.

But even still, the mechanism escaped him. He could open it enough, but he couldn’t— It was hooked on, and he was not a man. He was a cat.

And Sephiroth, he realized with a swell of hope, was a dog.

 _Shake._ He ordered, pinning the mechanism open with his front paws.

_I beg your pardon?_

_You’re a dog, right? Shake!_

Sephiroth tilted his head back to glare at him. Lifted his paw and placed it firmly in the dirt again, pinning Cloud with a look that said he was an idiot.

Cloud stared back. Flattened his ears. _Not that kind_. He shook off in demonstration, tail to nose, as if he’d had another dreaded ‘flea bath.’

The bell on his collar chimed. A dog nearby sniffed the air, waking up abruptly.

 _Shit._ Cloud hissed.

 _Run, cat._ The wolfdog whispered. _Heideggar will bark_.

Cloud bristled. Took a deep breath. Pounced back down on the mechanism. Pinned it open with claws that were starting to ache.

 _Shake!_ He ordered, and yowled aloud as he said it.

Sephiroth stared only a second. Heideggar growled and started to bark. The six dogs whuffed themselves to alertness.

Sephiroth shook. Rose to his feet, shaking off like he’d just been released from the worst and longest bath of his life.

Cloud fell away from his neck along with the chain. Yowled as his claw caught and tore, bloody. He shook the hook away with a wild, twisting jump. The dogs were all but frothing at the mouth.

Inside the house, someone was swearing.

 _Go!_ Cloud ordered, already sprinting for the fenceline. He scrambled up and onto the top. Looked back. Saw Sephiroth standing, stiff and shaking. His head lowered. He was drooling slightly. His eyes had a dazed, crazed look to them. His long white fur was still settling from his shake.

 _Sephiroth!_ Cloud yelled down to him, and the wolfdog’s head snapped up at the sound of his name.

“What the hell is going on out here!” Yelled a human voice, clomping towards the door.

 _Come!_ Cloud ordered, hair standing on end, petrified.

Sephiroth wasn’t just fast. It wasn’t that he was fast. He moved like he was… Inescapable. Inexorable. It took him one loping stride to catch his gait. By the second stride, he was at the fence.

He cleared it and Cloud both in a single jump.

Cloud was staring. Long enough that someone shoved the door open. Cloud looked back, just for a moment, into the furious eyes of the cold man. Then he jumped off the railing. Sephiroth stood at the back of the fence, front paw lifted, looking uncertain. Cloud darted between his legs.

 _This way, this way_ , he called, all frantic motion now that they were free. His paw was bleeding, but it wasn’t bad enough that the human could follow. Sephiroth’s heavy footfalls followed, as did the human’s cursing.

 _Wait_ , Sephiroth’s voice warned. Cloud skidded. Looked back. They were only one corner away the human was going to—

 _You look like prey when you run._ Sephiroth warned, eyes averted, tail tucked, shifting his weight. Cloud didn’t understand. He never tucked his tail except to cuddle. _Ride me. I will carry you home_.

 _Stupid_ . Cloud spat, but he sprinted back and jumped onto Sephiroth’s back in one smooth leap. _All that time to eat me and_ now _you’re worried?_

A low laugh answered him, even as he scrambled to find purchase on the wolfdog’s back as he started back up into that churning motion of his run once again.

 _Use your claws. You’ll hardly hurt me_.

But Cloud didn’t. Wouldn’t. Claws were for teaching unkind lessons. Sephiroth had been taught enough of those.

And then Cloud realized.

Realized the bones under his paws. Hidden beneath the thick fur. Realized the heavy panting, and the unsteady churn of his steps.

 _You’re sick._ He said in worry.

 _Where do I go?_ Sephiroth said in reply.

So Cloud guided him as they heard the human clamoring. As they heard the barking screaming of the dogs. Sephiroth shouldered open the broken door without a thought, and held it open with his nose to make sure it closed quietly. Then he slumped slowly to the floor, panting hard.

 _No, wait_ , Cloud slid off his back. Paced around to his nose. _Get up. Get up, we’re almost there_.

 _Here is enough_ . Sephiroth said. _Go home, Cloud. Rest easy. You saved me_.

 _No._ Cloud stepped up onto his nose. Bent down to press their heads together. Tilted up to wash the fur between Sephiroth’s eyes. _Up_.

_I am not yours to command._

_Get up._ Cloud repeated, stepping off his snout to rub against his massive head, nose to tail. _Up_.

 _Cloud_.

 _My Tifa will heal you_ . Cloud insisted. _My Marlene will pet you. My Barret will guard you_.

 _I am not a dog. They will only hand me back_.

Cloud puffed, offended. He arched his back. Dug his claws against the concrete floor. Cast around for something to say, and found himself lacking aside from spitting curses at him for thinking so little of his home. His people.

 _Stupid!_ He spat out at last, and pushed forward. Gripped Sephiroth’s collar in his teeth. Dug his feet in. Tried to pull. He weighed so much. The metal hurt his teeth.

_Cloud…_

Cloud dropped the collar. Jumped over his body. Gripped a mouthful of fur at his ruff. Tried that way. Dragged on it, like he would a kitten’s. Dug his paws in. His claws slipped on the floor with his effort. Sephiroth’s fur filled his mouth. Nothing like a cat’s.

 _Tifa,_ he panted, _will give you a bath, and you will hate it_. He paced around behind him. Tried to push his shoulder into his tail. To force him forward. To force him up.

 _She will be too afraid_.

 _She will not!_ Cloud returned, yowling at him, back arched, fur bristling.

 _Why wouldn’t she be?_ Sephiroth’s eyes were tired. His ears drooped.

 _Because—_ Cloud hesitated. Pressed forward. Leaned against Sephiroth’s side. Shared his scent. _You are a good dog_.

Sephiroth stiffened. Wagged his tail just once.

Cloud pressed closer. Washed the fur just beneath Sephiroth’s wild green eye, where his dark skin made it look like he’d lined his gaze in charcoal.

 _Because you are my Sephiroth, and they are my people, and you will come home with me, and they will love you_.

_What if they don’t?_

_They will help anyway. And if you do not stay with them, I will…_ Cloud hesitated. Swallowed. Puffed out his chest. _I will stay with you_.

Sephiroth hesitated. _But…_ He shifted. Nosed at the bell on Cloud’s collar. It didn’t even frighten him, to have the wolf’s jaws so close to his throat.

 _You are a good dog._ Cloud repeated firmly, refusing to back down from his promise. _You are mine._

He didn’t know if the compliment translated from cat to dog. But apparently it was enough. Sephiroth shifted. Rose on stiff legs. Cloud stayed beside him, one paw lifted. He knew he couldn’t help, but he would try.

 _It is only the second floor._ He said. _We will be there soon_.

Sephiroth’s piercing eyes lifted, and fixed on the path ahead. His gaze did not stray again as he put one foot in front of the other, over and over and over.

* * *

“Cloud?” Marlene’s sleepy voice answered him, the door cracking open.

Cloud yowled again, dropping to all fours where he’d been clawing at the door. Sephiroth wavered at his side. He had not spoken since the stairs. Even as Marlene’s mouth dropped open he started to slump. Cloud pushed forward. Shoved on the door with all his weight. Marlene was stronger than him, but she backed up and opened it wider. Let Sephiroth stagger in. He wasn’t even fully out of the doorway when his legs gave out. Cloud purred as loud as he could Pressed up against Sephiroth. Rubbed against his cheek and muzzle and face.

 _Look Marlene_ , he said, half-desperate. _Friend_.

Marlene frowned at him. Frowned at the dog. Her face was so small and so squishy. She took a couple steps forward, and Cloud thought— But no. No, she was such a good little girl, she was moving Sephiroth’s tail out of the way so she could close the door.

“What’s wrong, mister puppy?” She asked as she wandered back over to them. She pulnked down to sit in a single motion. Put a hand on Sephiroth’s side. Cloud watched her hand. How she stroked gently, gently, like Tifa had taught her to with him.

 _Yes,_ he told her. _That’s my good little girl_.

“Oh,” she whispered. “You’re fluffy…”

Cloud watched her fingers dig into Sephiroth’s fur, till her hand was up to the wrist in it. So thick, so luxurious. He watched her face change in worry. Watched her trace her hand over his heaving side.

“Wait here, mister puppy.” She whispered. She offered one hand to Cloud, and he took a break from scent-marking Sephiroth to lift his entire front body off the ground, refreshing his bond with her.

 _Soft,_ Sephiroth murmured, half asleep.

 _She’s very soft handed_. Cloud agreed, pleased that he had noticed.

But Sephiroth was already drifting again. Cloud heard Barret coming long before he saw him. He looked at the picture that the giant wolfdog made, passed out at the front door of their tiny apartment, and he climbed on top of him. Hunkered down in his fur. Curled up. Closed his eyes.

 _See?_ He told Barret even as the huge man walked into the room. _He is big, but he is safe, like you. He would not even hurt a tiny cat_.

 _Ah,_ Sephiroth’s voice. Small and amused. He opened his mouth to pant. One ear flopped to the side. _So you admit you’re tiny._

“What the hell, Cloud.” Barret asked, though it was in a whisper.

 _Keep your eyes closed._ Cloud advised. _Let him see you as something to protect_.

_He’s big._

_Yes._

_He could hurt me._

Cloud hesitated. Then stood up. Stretched on Sephiroth’s back. Took half a step closer without leaving his wolfdog’s shoulder. Mewed at Barret, reaching out to beg a pet.

“What’s gotten into you, huh Cloud?” Barret asked, his huge fingers carefully skirting Cloud’s whiskers to scratch at the base of his jaw.

 _He could throw me out the window._ Cloud informed Sephiroth. _He scratches my chin instead. Be brave_.

Sephiroth, who had been peeking out of one bright eye, closed it again. Let out a slow, heavy breath. Then, very, very quietly, whimpered.

“Papa,” Marlene said. Took Barret’s hand. Guided it to Sephiroth’s heaving ribcage. Cloud saw Barret’s expression change as he felt the ribs there. Saw Sephiroth stiffen, then release.

“We can’t keep a dog.” Barret warned. “But I’ll see if it’s okay for him ta eat some of Cloud’s food.”

 _They cannot keep a dog._ Sephiroth echoed, though he swallowed hard at the mention of food.

 _He said the same when Tifa brought me home_ . Cloud said proudly, lashing his tail. _And just so you know, you can eat my food today, but normally I will hiss at you for it._

Sephiroth, apparently despite himself, wagged his tail.

He was very tired, though. And very weak. Cloud thought it probably worked in his favor. Cloud stayed lying on top of him, and purred as loud as he could. Mama had always said that purring was good for cats and people, so it must have been good for dogs too.

Sephiroth was having a hard time getting up, so Marlene fed him pieces of cat food from her hands. Barret had almost exploded with anxiety at the first sight of Sephiroth’s teeth, but the wolfdog was careful. He lapped the food from her hand with his too-red tongue, then crunched it in his back teeth.

Barret was the one to offer him water cupped in his one broad hand.

 _Your human has a missing limb._ Sephiroth noted, cracking an eye open again as he twisted to lap the water out of Barret’s hand.

 _Yes, that is normal for him._ Cloud informed him, kneading his front paws on Sephiroth’s thick fur, trying not to forget to purr and fall asleep.

By the time Tifa got home, Barret had taken the collar off of Sephiroth and helped him move from the doorway onto a pile of sofa cushions he’d taken off the sofa and put on the floor for him.

“Holy shit.” Said Tifa.

“That’s a bad word!” Marlene objected.

“That’s a wolf.” Tifa said.

“Naw,” Barret replied, waving his hand. “He’s a sweetheart. Cloud brought ‘im home. He’s thin as a rail. But look at the two of ‘em!”

Cloud flicked an ear and tried to ignore them. Sephiroth was very warm, and Cloud had just gotten really comfortable, splayed out on his side on top of Sephiroth’s side, drinking in his warmth, keeping an ear in his breathing and heartbeat.

“Okay, well, it’s a sweet wolf.” Tifa said, shifting closer.

Cloud blinked his eyes open. Stared up at her fixedly.

 _He can stay_ . Cloud urged her, though she couldn’t understand him. _He can stay._

 _Why… Do you care?_ Sephiroth murmured, having only halfway roused when Tifa entered the room.

 _You gave me this._ Cloud whispered. _My house. My people._ He turned his head. Licked Sephiroth’s soft, pointy ear. _I want to share_.

“I… Don’t think I can afford a dog.” Tifa said uncertainty, and Cloud felt his heart speed up, but—

“He an’ Marlene really hit it off.” Barret said, as if he wasn’t still rubbing his thumb over Sephiroth’s skull in slow, tender motions. “An’ he an’ Cloud clearly get on great. Maybe…”

“Yes!” Marlene yelled. “Yes, yes, yes!”

Cloud thought for a second that Sephiroth would startle at the yelling. But instead he just wagged his tail. Once. Twice. Three times.

 _What a wonderful little creature._ He murmured in praise as he fell asleep again, and Cloud kept washing his ear and purring until Sephiroth was snoring again.

* * *

They took Sephiroth to the vet, and he did not _like_ it, but he got his shots and a new tag, and he did not bite anyone, he reported.

The vet also said he had to eat lots and lots, so Sephiroth didn’t mind too much in the long run.

Tifa gave Sephiroth a bath, and he _hated_ it, but he did not bite her. He stood stiff with his tail tucked and his ears pinned back and drooled a little from holding back, but afterwards she took a long time drying him off, and telling him how good he was, so he didn’t mind that too much either.

Cloud wouldn’t snuggle him until he was fully dry, though.

They got Sephiroth a new collar. And then they got him a leash. And then they were going on ‘walks’ and that was _not_ fair. So Cloud insisted he come along. He insisted by twining between their legs, and yelling, and slipping out the door until finally Tifa came home with a harness and a small leash.

It felt like he was _leaning_ on something, and he kept trying to lean on it and falling over, and Sephiroth kept _laughing_ at him, but it was okay. He learned, and then they all went on walks together. Half the time he rode on Sephiroth or Barret anyhow.

Sephiroth got stronger. Sephiroth got prettier. Cloud made sure that any cat they passed on their walks saw him groom his wolfdog’s ear. He made sure that Aerith got her own introduction, though she did not seem as at ease in Sephiroth’s presence as Cloud was, despite how much closer she was to him in size.

 _I know you._ Sephiroth had said. _You used to come to the fence to play with Zack._

 _Yes!_ Aerith had said. _But then he was gone. What happened?_

Cloud hadn’t realized. He told her, sheepishly. It was his fault Zack was gone.

But Aerith just smiled at him and washed the dull gold fur on his face, and told him it wasn’t his fault.

* * *

A month later saw Sephiroth trotting smoothly at Marlene’s side. Barret was holding the end of his leash, but Marlene was holding the middle, pretending to walk her precious puppy. They’d renamed Sephiroth something else. Something new. Cloud thought that was nice. He’d never have to hear anyone call him that again.

 _Do you want me to call you Snow too?_ Cloud had asked.

 _No,_ Sephiroth had replied with a chuckle. _I like when you call me Sephiroth_.

“Daddy!” Marlene said, and the whole company of them froze, alert for danger. Cloud stood up from Sephiroth’s back where he’d been half-napping instead of participating in the walk.

“What is it, angel?” Barret asked, blinking down at his daughter in alarm.

Marlene pointed enthusiastically across the street. “That puppy has three legs like you!”

Cloud looked. Sephiroth looked. The dog across the street looked. Then the black dog’s mouth dropped open in a huge puppy smile, and he started barking in delight, jumping up and down at the end of his leash without pulling, light and athletic on his three legs. The X-shaped scar was almost covered by his new coat of fur.

Sephiroth and Cloud couldn’t even make out what he was saying. That was alright. Sephiroth pointed his nose in Zack’s direction and started walking, direct and enthusiastic. Barret made them wait for the light, but the person holding onto Zack seemed reluctant to pull him away, so that was okay.

“Uh!” Said Barret awkwardly, trying to hold most of a wolf and a tiny blonde cat back.

“Mine’s friendly?” The guy offered from under his hoodie, trying to hold Zack down while rubbing his chest.

 _Zack!_ Cloud got ahead first. Barret was more worried about keeping Sephiroth back.

The black dog lowered his muzzle. Sniffed him all over. Gave him an awful, wet lick across the top of his head. Whined and wiggled and dropped down onto his belly, wagging his tail like mad.

 _Spike, Spike, Spike, Spike!_ He was chanting happily.

Sephiroth finally plowed his way in. Dropped down to lie directly on top of Zack and started washing the insides of his ears, almost paternally. Cloud shook off the disgusting lick and stepped forward. Rubbed against Zack over and over and over. _Mine, mine, mine._

 _Uh…_ Zack said.

 _He likes you._ Sephiroth translated. _We missed you_.

Zack whined. Whimpered. Wiggled around till he could return Sephiroth’s affection, licking his chin over and over and over.

Barret and Marlene and Zack’s person were laughing. Were shaking their heads. Were talking. Exchanging something.

 _How?_ Cloud asked.

 _He was in the car._ Zack answered, panting. _He took me to a place. They couldn’t fix my leg, but they fixed me, and then Kunsel took me home. You?_

 _My Tifa found me and brought me to my Barret and my Marlene_ . Cloud informed him. _And then I brought my Sephiroth home._

 _Once he rubs on you, you’re his_. Sephiroth informed Zack in a low rumble, even as he let Marlene coax him off from on top of the wiggly black dog.

 _Yes._ Cloud agreed, tilting his head. _But you’re more mine than the rest of them, Sephiroth._

_Oh?_

Cloud wandered over. Leaned against his legs. Yes, he thought. But he didn't know how to say ‘mine’ in the way that he _meant_ it in a way that a dog would _understand_. There were different ways of having. There were different ways of keeping safe.

So he just jumped up on his wolf’s back again and purred to himself contentedly, kneading thick white fur with gentle claws while Sephiroth and Zack sniffed each other softly.

[Illustration by https://twitter.com/tomowowo who whipped this together in secret while I was writing <3 ]


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